Most recently updated 15th of May 2025.
This Ratepayers and Residents' website is also being used to by
The Federation of Ratepayers Associations of New Zealand Incorporated.
We are currently ( May 2025 ) seeking expressions of interest from people willing to commit to putting some time and energy into resurrecting this organisation.
About this website : Set up in 2015 by Alan Preston to provide a directory of Ratepayer and Residents' Associations around New Zealand
with information that is relevant and useful to such organisations.
About the Federation of Ratepayer Associations of New Zealand (Association Incorporated)
Following a well-attended and enthusiastic national conference held in Nelson in November 2018, the interim steering committee was formed and in March 2019 we started applying to become an Incorporated Society.
Our aims are set out in Our Constitution - but broadly , we are a non-partisan group formed with the aim of creating a resource for Ratepayer and Residents' Associations around New Zealand.
As seems to be the case with so many civics organisations around New Zealand , for whatever reasons, the business of life and personal imperatives, - the enthusiasm with which leads to their formation eventually gives way to apathy, neglect, decay and eventual demise.
So this, despite the imminent threat of huge rates rises being proposed in 2024, is where The Federation of Ratepayer Associations currently finds itself.
Contact : Alan Preston ( Secretary ) Mangwhai, Northland Mob: 02102377242 ratepayersandresidents@gmail.com
Please join us on our Facebook Group : https://www.facebook.com/ratepayersandresidents : Ratepayers and Residents of New Zealand
Membership for Associations $20 per annum New : KiwiBank Account : 38-9022-0685427-00
Last updated on Thursday the 18th of May 2025.
28th of November 2024
Important incoming email from Ministry of Internal Affairs:
From : Lisa Mackay <Lisa.Mackay2@dia.govt.nz>
Kate Barnes <Kate.Barnes@dia.govt.nz>
Consultation on potential Local Government Act 2002 changes
The Minister of Local Government, Hon Simeon Brown, is looking at issues around conduct, transparency, and free speech in local government. The Department of Internal Affairs is seeking views from a range of people and groups to ensure we have a broad perspective on these issues.
The specific areas we will be looking at are:
Codes of conduct
Access to information for elected members
Governance requirements set out in the Local Government Act 2002
Our time for consultation is likely to be quite limited so we are aiming to set up meetings for the first two weeks of December.
Would you be interested in talking to us, or have recommendations for other ratepayer groups we could get in contact with who may be interested?
Kind regards,
Lisa Mackay | Senior Policy Analyst, Ue Te Hinātore – Local Government Branch
Te Tari Taiwhenua | The Department of Internal Affairs
45 Pipitea St | PO Box 805, Wellington 6140, New Zealand
Mobile: 027 292 3922
Alan Preston participated (while travelling in South Africa ) on the 3rd of December 2024 in a Zoom conference call with 3 officials from the Ministry of Internal Affairs but ( I ) was only able to say that I had no mandate to speak on behalf of our Assocation as it not currently active.
The Rotorua Residents and Ratepayers Association have put in a detailed 21 page submission. ( 2024-12-09 ) which you can read here.
Chairman o the Roturua Residents and Ratepayers' Association Inc, Reynold Macpherson has provided a summary of the issues that other Associations may find useful when making their own submissions on the
Proposed Improvements to the Local Government Act (2002) via the following staff at the Ministry of Internal Affairs : Alicia Harris Alicia.Harris@dia.govt.nz, Kate Barnes Kate.Barnes@dia.govt.nz, Lisa Mackay Lisa.Mackay2@dia.govt.nz Rowan Burns Rowan.Burns@dia.govt.nz, Kirsty Austin Kirsty.Austin@dia.govt.nz
[1] Reynold Macpherson helped found the Rotorua Pro-Democracy Society in December 2014 and led its transition to become the RDRR in October 2015. His PhD is in the strategic leadership of systems. He led the turnround of Waiariki Institute of Technology and the startup of Abu Dhabi University. He has held two personal chairs and four ministerial commissions to assist with system reforms. He has published 17 books and 76 research papers. He can be contacted at 07 346 8553, 021 725 708, reynold@reynoldmacpherson.ac.nz
2022 AGM for the Federation of Ratepayer Associations of NZ
To be held via Zoom - Sunday the 4th of December 2022 from 3-5 p.m.
All details and the link to the meeting will be provided on this page.
For everything you need to know about the proposed Three Waters scheme , please head over to the Communities for Local Democracy's website @ https://www.communities4localdemocracy.co.nz/
20220721 : Bryce Edwards : Public submissions on political donations reform released :
Local Government (Pecuniary Interests Register) Amendment Bill
3 Waters,